Chinese tourists to Malaysia increase 200% thanks to visa-free agreements

Malaysian Minister of Tourism , Arts and Culture Tiong King Sing on August 4 called on Malaysian airlines to take advantage of this trend and open more direct flights to attract more international visitors to the country, especially Chinese tourists.

Mr Tiong King Sing also announced the launch of AirAsia’s first direct flights from Ningbo in China to Kuala Lumpur and Kota Kinabalu, with a frequency of three flights per week, asserting that the direct routes will help attract more tourists, especially from Zhejiang province and other parts of China.

International tourists visit Melaka, Malaysia.

Malaysia aims to welcome 5 million Chinese tourists by 2024, hoping to accelerate its economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. Malaysia's economy grew 3.7% in 2023, missing its targets and lagging behind regional neighbors Indonesia and the Philippines. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, Chinese tourists were Malaysia's third-largest source of tourists, after Singapore and Indonesia, with 3.1 million visitors in 2019.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced a 30-day visa exemption for tourists from China and India starting December 1, 2023. In response, China also announced an extension of visa exemption for Malaysian tourists from 15 to 30 days, marking the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries this year.

Source: https://vov.vn/du-lich/luong-khach-trung-quoc-toi-malaysia-tang-200-nho-cac-thoa-thuan-mien-thi-thuc-post1112358.vov